French Classics Made Easy (19 page)

Pasta of all shapes and sizes can be cooked, according to the package directions, and mixed with the cream, peas, ham, and cheese.

SERVES 6

Fresh Pasta (
page 79
) or 1 pound refrigerated fettuccine

1 cup heavy cream

⅛ teaspoon salt

⅛ teaspoon freshly ground pepper

1 cup fresh or frozen baby peas, cooked

1 slice ham, cut ¼-inch-thick (boiled, baked, or smoked), diced

2 ounces Parmesan cheese, grated (about ½ cup)

1.
If making your own pasta, follow the Fresh Pasta recipe through step 3. In step 4, cut the noodles into ¼-inch widths. Continue with the recipe through step 5.

2.
While the noodles are cooking, bring the cream to a boil in a small saucepan over medium-high heat. Season with the salt and pepper and allow to boil gently until the cream thickens enough to coat a spoon, about 30 seconds. Gently stir in the peas, ham, and half the Parmesan. Heat for several seconds.

3.
When the noodles have finished cooking, drain them in a colander. Transfer them to a warm serving bowl and pour the sauce over.

4.
Serve immediately, with the remaining Parmesan on the side.

FRESH GREEN PASTA

[PÂTES FRAÎCHES VERTES]

I use watercress to make green pasta because it produces a lovely color and a fresh taste, but you can use spinach, basil, arugula, or combinations such as watercress, tarragon, chives, and a touch of parsley and basil.

In addition to adding color and flavor, the purée makes the dough less elastic and easier to roll out.

Serve this with Tomato Sauce (
page 325
), or substitute it for the dumplings in the recipe for Parisian-Style Gnocchi (
page 70
), or for the plain pasta in Fresh Pasta with Cream, Peas, and Parmesan (facing page).

MAKES ABOUT 1 POUND/SERVES 4 TO 6

2 bunches watercress, thick stems trimmed

2 cups (300g) all-purpose flour

3 eggs

3 tablespoons vegetable oil

2 teaspoons water

1½ teaspoons salt Butter or your favorite sauce, for serving

1.
Place a large saucepan filled with water over high heat and bring to a boil. Plunge the watercress into the boiling water and blanch for about 45 seconds. Drain and refresh under cold running water.

2.
Place the watercress in a food processor and process until puréed, 1 to 2 minutes. Transfer the purée to a sieve lined with a double thickness of paper towel and set over a bowl. Gently press out as much moisture as possible; set aside the watercress liquid. Press the watercress purée dry between two thicknesses of paper towel, changing the towels frequently. The purée should be as dry as possible. It will end up as a thin sheet of pressed purée.

3.
Place the purée, 2 teaspoons of the reserved watercress liquid, and the remaining ingredients in a food processor and process until a smooth, soft dough forms, about 1 minute. If the dough is too sticky, add more flour, 1 teaspoon at a time. If the dough is too firm, add more water, ½ teaspoon at a time.

4.
Proceed as for Fresh Pasta (
page 79
) from step 2 through step 5.

5.
To serve, drain the noodles and toss them in butter or one of your favorite sauces. Serve immediately.

IN ADDITION

As with any pasta, if I’m not cooking it right away, I dry or partially dry the finished pasta before placing it in plastic bags. (If the pasta is not partially dried first, it may stick together.) It can be refrigerated for a few days, but I prefer freezing it. Like all fresh pasta, it can be frozen for several months. In certain areas of the country where humidity may be extremely high, stickiness may cause drying to be a problem. In such cases, dusting the noodles with cornmeal will prevent this.

EGG NOODLES
WITH
M
ORELS

[NOUILLES AUX MORILLES]

Morels are one of nature’s treasures. Fresh morels are available in season in parts of the country, but I use dried ones in this recipe. While both dark brown and white morels are available, I recommend using only the more robust-flavored brown ones for this recipe. Dried morels can be easily found in specialty shops and on the Internet, but when you find fresh ones, use them! Try preparing this recipe with dried shiitake or dried chanterelle mushrooms as well. This cream sauce with mushrooms is delicious when served with sautéed chicken and veal. The noodles serve four as a main course or six as a first course.

SERVES 4 TO 6

S
TRETCHING
N
OODLES

Instead of rolling the dough paper thin before cutting it into noodles, I find it easier and more fun to stop rolling when the dough is about 1/16 inch thick, and after cutting into noodles, to stretch them the rest of the way to increase their length and thinness.

It is extremely important to allow the noodles to rest, covered with plastic wrap, before attempting to stretch them. A 2-foot cut noodle that has not rested will snap or break before being stretched to 4 feet. But if you let the noodles rest for 1½ hours, they can easily be stretched up to 8 feet.

Finding a place to hang the stretched noodles to dry can be a problem. Cut in half, they hang nicely over the backs of kitchen chairs or on a clothes-drying rack; or you can spread them out on your countertop. Many years ago, while driving through Naples, I saw women hanging pasta up to dry on their outdoor clotheslines. For those who wish to try this method, be warned that I also saw the neighbors’ dogs nibbling on the ends.

Fresh Pasta (
page 79
) or 1 pound refrigerated fettuccine

1 ounce dried morel mushrooms or ⅓ to ½ pound fresh morels

1 cup heavy cream

½ teaspoon salt

⅛ teaspoon freshly ground pepper, plus more for serving

2 ounces Parmesan cheese, grated (about ½ cup)

1.
If making your own pasta, follow the Fresh Pasta recipe through step 3. In step 4, cut the noodles into ¼-inch widths.

2.
Meanwhile, soak the dried mushrooms in a small bowl of cold water. Stir the mushrooms in the water as they soak, making sure that there is sufficient water in the bowl for them to float, and allow any dirt or sand to fall to the bottom of the bowl. As the mushrooms swell in size and soften, the water will become brown and it will acquire the strong flavor of the mushroom. This will take 10 to 15 minutes.

3.
When the mushrooms are soft, gently squeeze them over the bowl and then place them in a small saucepan. When the dirt has fallen to the bottom of the bowl and the water in the bowl is clear, very carefully pour it into the saucepan with the mushrooms and discard the dirt at the bottom.

4.
Bring the mushrooms and liquid to a boil and gently boil until only 1 teaspoon of liquid remains, about 4 minutes. Add the cream, season with the salt and pepper, and set aside.

5.
In a stockpot, bring 4 quarts of water to a boil. Add the noodles and boil until tender yet a bit chewy, 3 to 5 minutes. Stir the noodles several times to prevent them from sticking together.

6.
While the noodles are cooking, bring the cream and mushrooms to a boil. When the noodles have finished cooking, drain them in a colander. Transfer them to a warm serving bowl and cover with the sauce. Toss with half of the grated Parmesan cheese.

7.
Serve immediately, with the remaining cheese and additional pepper on the side.

FOUR-CHEESE RAVIOLI

[RAVIOLI AUX QUATRE FROMAGES]

Ravoli, although Italian in origin, have been used quite imaginatively by French chefs for hundreds of years. If you enjoy making pasta, you will find making ravioli a very creative experience. You can make miniature ravioli to serve in soups and ragouts, or extra-large ones that can serve as individual portions for a first course. The ravioli for this recipe will serve 6 as a main course and 12 as a first course.

If you are not up to making your own pasta, try making ravioli with wonton skins, which can be found in most supermarkets. Two wonton skins will make four standard-size ravioli or one giant one.

The options for making ravioli ahead of time are many. You can freeze the ravioli before cooking them and cook them later without thawing (they’ll take a little longer to cook). Or you can cook the ravioli, refrigerate them, and reheat in the sauce later. Or you can combine the cooked ravioli and sauce before refrigerating or freezing and then reheat the whole dish later.

SERVES 6 OR 12

R
AVIOLI
G
UIDELINES

The types of ravioli fillings are endless, and—with just a few guidelines—I leave them to your imagination. Fillings used should not require additional cooking. Fillings should be relatively dry. If necessary, use bread crumbs to absorb excess liquid. Try fillings of cooked meat, poultry, seafood, sweetbreads, tongue, mushrooms, spinach, vegetable purées, cheese, or combinations thereof. If you do use cheese, just keep in mind that dry cheeses (such as Parmesan) and low-fat cheeses do not generally soften when boiled and the resulting filling will be dry or coarse.

Although traditional sauces are based on cheese, cream, or tomato, any sauce that complements your filling can be used.

If you are not interested in making ravioli, make the cheese filling to spread on crackers or to fill cherry tomatoes to serve as an hors d’oeuvre.

Fresh Pasta (
page 79
)

2 ounces Swiss-style cheese, such as Gruyère or Emmentaler

1 ounce Parmesan cheese, grated (about ¼ cup)

8 ounces cream cheese

4 ounces ricotta cheese

12 fresh basil leaves

1 egg, beaten with a pinch of salt Tomato Sauce (
page 325
)

1.
Make the fresh pasta through step 3 of the recipe, rolling each rectangle of dough as thin as possible into a sheet about 16 x 19 inches, dusting and turning the dough so it does
not stick to the work surface. If the dough becomes too elastic to roll, cover it with plastic wrap to prevent drying and allow it to rest for 2 or 3 minutes before continuing. If you have the space, roll out both pieces of dough at the same time, alternating from one to the other as they build up tension. Cover the pasta with plastic wrap while you make the cheese filling.

2.
In a food processor, finely chop the Swiss-style and Parmesan cheeses. Add the cream cheese, ricotta, and basil leaves and process well.

3.
Brush a light coat of beaten egg on one of the sheets of pasta. With a pastry bag fitted with a ½-inch (#6) plain tube, or with a spoon, drop the cheese filling onto the sheets of pasta in ½-teaspoon mounds spaced about ¾ inch apart.

4.
Roll up the second sheet of pasta onto your rolling pin and unroll it to cover the filling. Press the dough together firmly around the filling to seal. Using a knife or ravioli-cutting wheel, cut between the rows of filling to form little square ravioli. At this point, let the ravioli rest 15 to 20 minutes: If the egg sealant is not allowed to dry, the filling will escape during cooking. (If the ravioli will not be used within a few hours, freeze them in layers separated by sheets of plastic wrap. Do not thaw before cooking.)